South African woman wins Miss World beauty pageant in London

Reuters Staff

1 Min Read

LONDON (Reuters) - A 22-year-old South African woman, Rolene Strauss, won the Miss World 2014 beauty pageant in London on Sunday, the organizers said in a statement.

Rolene Strauss of South Africa (C) is crowned Miss World 2014 by Miss World 2013, Megan Young of the Philippines (C rear), as Elizabeth Safrit of the U.S (R) and Edina Kulczar of Hungary (L) who placed third and second respectively, look on at the ExCel Centre in east London, December 14, 2014. REUTERS/Toby Melville

Hungary’s Edina Kulcsár came second and Elizabeth Safrit, representing the United States, came third.

This year’s pageant, the 64th, was marred by tragedy after a Honduran beauty queen was found shot dead in a suspected crime of passion days before she was due to take part.

The pageant’s 124 contestants traveled to the Oxford Union society earlier this month to discuss whether such competitions still had a place in modern society. British media reported that some students from Oxford University were disappointed that the event failed to generate a lively debate on the subject.